Penguicon 2018

We inhabit a world of multiple and intersecting fandoms and nerdities. Fandom has always included an intersection of people interested in technologies, SF, fantasy, comics, horror, cosplay, alongside people devoted to one specific franchise or author. These variations and divisions have been heightened by recent cultural developments. Gaming of various sorts has bred multiple fandoms. Many mainstream readers embrace science fiction and fantasy. Whereas fans once had a couple of genre shows and movies at any one time and pretty much everyone had some familiarity with them, we now have a surfeit of franchises. Finally, the internet allows people with once-marginal interests to find each other-- it may even negate the need for Cons.

This panel seeks to examine the complexity of fandom in the twenty-first century, its intersections and its complications.